New Year’s is always a time of year in the Turks & Caicos with celebration and parties throughout the week between Christmas and New Years. New Year Eve features fireworks display at many resorts, such as Beaches, Club Med and The Sands, as well as gala dinner parties and rocking events with live music at places like Ports of Call and Danny Buoy’s.

For their inaugural New Years on Providenciales, Nikki Beach will be throwing Massive New Year’s Bash.  More 1,200 people are expected to bring in the New Year at Nikki Beach watching the official Ball Drop of the Caribbean.  Nikki has constructed a huge Ball Drop on their beach that will count down the final seconds of 2008 with the best of Provo.  Entertainment will include a Columbian Female Dance Troupe and Cirque performers from around the world.  Tickets can be booked at www.mynikkibeach.net.

New Year’s caps off with a traditional junk-a-noo rush in downtown Providenciales at dawn. For those revelers still awake, it’s quite a display of music, dancing and energy as two of the leading junk-a-noo bands collide.

Vacations in the Turks and Caicos Islands Reservations 1-877-774-5486 or visit www.discovertci.tc

This winter season will see a number of new restaurants on the already world class Turks & Caicos dining scene.

Here are a few to whet your appetite:

Local restaurateur Tony Arata takes his magic to Ocean Club, where he has transformed that property’s restaurant into Opus, Wine Bar and Grille. Featuring a fabulous mahogany bar, an extensive wine list, and a creative menu from Chefs Rollie and Abby, Opus is sure to be a hit. The friendly atmosphere is great for any occasion and the restaurant offers indoor and outdoor dining in a lush garden setting. Opus is open late night til midnight every night, perfect for when that late flight into the island is running late.

Meanwhile, the award-winning Regent Palms Turks and Caicos signature restaurant Parellel23, A Tropical Grille, has re-launched with a new focus on Caribbean-inspired specialties, perfect prime meats and fresh-caught seafood under the helm of acclaimed Executive Chef Torsten Rumprecht. The new menu features flawlessly grilled, 28-day dry-aged and corn-fed Nebraska beef, tender and tangy buffalo cuts, vanilla-infused fresh Caicos lobster tail and Chateaubriand pour deux. Each dish is prepared from organic and locally sourced provisions in the restaurant’s state-of-the-art display kitchen with a vintage-style brick oven to seal in authentic flavors and textures.

Further down the road, The Atlantic Bar & Grill has opened at the West Bay Club. The restaurant is set in our outdoor living area that is exquisitely and attractively landscaped with lush tropical foliage. The culinary expertise of Executive Chef Liz Tracey will tantalize your taste buds with a Caribbean cuisine experience like no other.

Gourmet Safari – a delectable tour of fine dining
The second annual TCI Gourmet Safari will be held December 19-21 and showcases some of the finest restaurants in the islands. The dine-around concept features two nights of whirlwind dining stops where diners sample a course from one of five establishments. The event also features a gourmet brunch on Sunday December 21, to be hosted by Nikki Beach, and featuring dishes form all the participating restaurants.

Participating restaurants include: Anacaona (Grace Bay Club); Coyaba, Parallel 23 (Regent Palms), O’Soleil (The Somerset); Amanyara, and Nikki Beach. Go the event web site for more information.

A research team, which included the folks from the Turks & Caicos National Museum, has discovered the wreck of the slave ship Trouvadore, which slammed into a reef off the coast of the Turks and Caicos Islands in 1841, freeing the 193 Africans who were being brought to the U.S. South for a life of servitude.

“The people of the Turks and Caicos have a direct line to this dramatic, historic event and it’s how so many of them ended up being there. We hope this discovery will encourage the people of the Turks and Caicos to protect and research their local history, especially the history that remains underwater,” head researcher Don Keith said.

The ship sank near a local landmark called Black Rock on the coast of East Caicos. Eventually, the research team found the remains of the ship in 9 feet of water about two miles west of Black Rock, where the vessel had apparently been pushed by wind and current.

Many of the ship’s survivors were forced to work in the country’s salt ponds for a year to pay for their rescue, but they were then freed. Like their neighbors in the Bahamas and many Caribbean islands, most of the 30,000 modern residents of the Turks and Caicos are thought to be descended from African slaves. But the research suggests many could be descended from the Trouvadore passengers, who were spared enslavement by the shipwreck.

Hotel Vacations to the Turks & Caicos Reservations 1-877-774-5486 or visit www.discovertci.tc

What would a Caribbean island be without its own rum? Recently some local entrepreneurs have introduced the first rum made here in the Turks & Caicos. The rum comes in traditional white and gold, as well as a premium version that is ideal for sipping on the beach, around the pool, at any of TCI’s restaurants, bars and nightclubs.

And, it’s not just smooth drinking - it celebrates an important historical and cultural aspect of our islands.

Bambarra takes its name from the settlement on Middle Caicos. This is the spot that was settled by the survivors of the shipwreck Trouvadore (see next story), which crashed on the reef just off East Caicos in 1841. The ship was a slave trader from Africa (with passengers coming from the village of Bambarra in East Africa), and when they made it to land in the Turks & Caicos they were granted freedom since slavery had been abolished years before in the UK Territory.

Ask for Bambarra by name when you visit Turks & Caicos and be sure to take home a bottle for your friends or as a souvenir.

Hotel Reservations for the Turks & Caicos Islands 1-877-774-5486 or visit www.discovertci.tc

The annual Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival is scheduled for February 19-21 and the Turks & Caicos will be there in force. We’ll be showcasing our best cuisine and promoting the destination to the huge crowds that flock to South Beach each year for the largest food and wine festival in North America.

The Festival kicks off on Thursday, February 19 with a late night party at The Raleigh Hotel where celebrity chef Tyler Florence will host a rocking evening. Turks and Caicos is a co-host and will be on hand with local music and food for festival goers to sample.

Saturday night, February 21, a very special event is planned at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel – the first Surf & Turks night, hosted by Clay Conley, head chef at the Mandarin’s Azul restaurant and a long time fan of Turks and Caicos seafood. He and a team of chefs, including some of the winners from the recent TCI Conch Festival, will prepare delectable dishes on the beach at the MO property overlooking Biscayne Bay. An authentic ripsaw band will entertain the guests.

Throughout the Festival, Turks & Caicos will have an exhibit in the Grand Tasting Tent on the beach, where local fare, Bambarra Rum will be served, and the fine art of conch knocking will be demonstrated.

Resort Reservations for the Turks and Caicos Islands toll free 1-877-774-5486 or visit www.discovertci.tc

From January 22-29, during the peak whale-migration season in the Turks & Caicos, world record holder free diver Tanya Streeter, will be resident at the Amanyara Resort, sharing her knowledge with guests.

Streeter, set a world record free dive in the Turks & Caicos in 2003 -  plunging to a depth of 370 feet -  and is a frequent visitor to our islands.

Amanyara will offer gentle stretching and breathing classes in which Tanya will teach the breathing techniques that helped her achieve her deepest dives.  Mrs. Streeter has a personal breath-hold of close to six-and-a-half minutes. She will also lead private sessions in the open sea, including snorkeling tours and free diving lessons in Amanyara Bay. She will be free diving around participants at depths of more than 50 feet. On dry land, she will host several short presentations and film screenings of her documentary “Diving with Whales” and will be available to chat with guests.

Reservations for Amanyara Turks & Caicos Resort - 1-877-774-5486 or visit http://www.discovertci.tc/amanyara.html

Don’t let the cold weather and depressing economy get you down. Take a quick trip to the Turks & Caicos and warm your soul…and toes. This winter it’s even easier to get here with additional flights coming from a wide range of gateways.

On American Airlines for the winter season there are 3 daily flights from Miami, and one a day from New York’s JFK. Direct flights are also available from Boston on Saturdays.

Delta offers 6-times a week service from Atlanta (no Tuesday flight), plus a second flight on Saturdays.

US Airways offers daily flights from Charlotte, and will add a second daily flight from hat city in February. Direct flights are also available from Boston and Philadelephia on Saturdays and Sundays.

Air Canada has direct flights from Toronto on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, and from Montreal on Thursdays.

Turks & Caicos Reservations 1-877-774-5486

www.discovertci.tc

Call 1-877-774-5486 to check rates & availability at any of these properties or at MANY other resorts in the Turks & Caicos Islands

• VILLA DEL MAR - Perfect island retreat for a vacation filled with endless sunshine and delightful diversions. *5th night free with every 4 nights booked
• NIKKI BEACH - An exhilarating new way to relax and have fun enjoying unique entertainment and dining.  *Stay 4 nights or more and get 1 free
• CORAL GARDENS ON GRACE BAY - Absolutely the very best snorkel beach resort on the island.  *5th night free
• SEVEN STARS - Luxurious accommodations and Impeccable service, you’ll never be disappointed! *Stay 3 nights or longer and get one night free or stay 7 nights or longer and get two nights free (also get a 20% resort discount for entire stay on all food and beverage, spa and boutique purchases)
• REGENT GRAND - Unwind and relax on the white powder sand beaches or laze around the beautiful infinity pool at this fantastic new resort.  *Book 7 nights for the price of 5 or book 4 nights for the price of 3
• ROYAL WEST INDIES - Great value, exceptional beachfront location, excellent restaurant, very well priced.  *Get your 5th night free
• WEST BAY CLUB - Private and intimate as it comprises only 46 suites with breathtaking views of a peaceful stretch of pristine beach.  *Free night offers available for several package combinations
• OCEAN CLUB and OCEAN CLUB WEST - Directly on exquisite Grace Bay Beach, along a wide, immaculate white beach, lots of place for the kids to run wild!  *Get your 7th night free
• NORTHWEST POINT - Wide open spaces make it an attractive island getaway to enjoy the peace and serenity of our islands.  *3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th night free offers, or, 6th and 7th night free on 7 night stays
• THE ALEXANDRA RESORT - Enjoy every moment in the sun at this sprawling beachfront resort in the heart of Grace Bay Beach.  *Stay for 4, 5 or 6 nights and you’ll get an additional night for FREE

 (*certain restrictions and blackout dates may apply)

For Reservations at any of these fine properties and to experience perfect Turks and Caicos vacations, call toll free for reservations 1-877-774-5486